I Can Wait To Be King
by petitprincess
Summary: What if Simba decided not to run away after he had "killed" Mufasa? What if he returns to the pride and they decided to make him king, despite being a cub? I swear it's better when you read it...hopefully. Rated T for violence and bit of mild language.
1. Chapter 1: Run Away?

**A/N: Just a fair warning, this was built on a sleep depraved mind, so, if this isn't good, then I'm sorry you forced yourself to read this XD!**

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After all the commotion from the stampede had died down, Simba hurriedly scrambled down the side of the gorge, hoping that his father would be in one piece. Once he got down to the bottom, his heart sank when he didn't see one trace of him. There was nothing but remnants of dust in the air, clouding his vision. _No. No, he can't be gone! He_ _ **has**_ _to be here!_ Simba thought quickly panicking. He shouted, " **Dad!** "

He heard nothing, but his echo bouncing off the walls. He looked around, ears perked, just to make sure he didn't miss anything. Running a bit more forward to get a better view the area, he repeated, " **Dad!** "

There was a faint sound of steps behind him; a bit of hope swelled in his chest, even though his steps did sound a bit off. "Dad?" He asked aloud, mostly to convince himself it was him. When the steps got louder towards him, his heart beat got faster with anticipation and a smile spread across his face at the thought of being reunited with his father. A silhouette formed in the clouds of dust, which caused Simba's smiled to falter. The steps were of a lone wildebeest. As it got closer, Simba stepped out of the way allowing it through and looked at the creature with curiosity (and a bit of resentment for making him believe it was his father). The loner galloped past a limp body underneath a broken branch. All the sudden, Simba felt like the ground had collapsed and he was sinking through the dark pit. The body lying battered, bruised, and limp underneath the branch was his father, Mufasa.

Shaking his head in disbelief, Simba bounded towards his deceased father and slowed as soon as he gotten closer. Tears threatened to fall from his eyes, as he noticed how ominously stiff his father was, but he refused to believe that he was dead. _It just can't be true,_ he thought sorrowfully. He inched closer and called, "Dad."

As expected, there was no answer, no movement. Simba hiccupped a sob and in an effort to make his father move, he rolled his cheek again his head. He whimpered, "…Dad, come on," still no answer. "You gotta get up."

He got on his hind legs, put his front legs on Mufasa's cheek, and started gently pushing on it. _C'mon dad, please,_ Simba pleaded in his head. He sobbed, "Dad. We gotta go home."

Trying once more to help his father up, he grabbed Mufasa's ear and started tugging on it. The only thing that happened was that the father's head rolled lifelessly. Feeling desperate and scared, Simba padded away from the corpse and cried, " **Help!** "

There was no response except for his voice reverberating off the steep walls. Hoping _someone_ would answer back, he shouted desperately, " **Somebody!** " Still no one answer back, feeling crestfallen he half-heartedly called, "Anybody!"

 _No-no-no-no! Please, someone help my dad. …Please,_ Simba thought sullenly as he felt himself breaking down. "Help," he sniffled mournfully. Finally realizing that no one was coming, the young prince gave up and turned back to his father's corpse. He stared at it for few seconds, thinking that there could possibly be a miracle that his father just get up, or cough, or even twitch. …Nothing. Not wanting to leave his father all alone, Simba nuzzled his father's limp paw, crawled underneath it, and embraced his father for the last time.

After a few minutes of silence (excluding Simba's sniffles and sobs), a figure appeared out of the thick dust. A dark lion with toxic green eyes stared down at Simba with almost an emotionless expression. He spoke, "Simba," the cub jumped back, startled by the lion's arrival. The lion finished in a dramatic whisper, "What have you done?"

 _N-No! Uncle Scar saw the whole thing! No, I-I didn't m-mean it,_ He stuttered frantically in his thoughts. Simba looked back-and-forth at his father's limp form and Scar's unnerving eyes. He stammered, "Th-there were wildebeests and he tried to save me…it was an accident, I-I…I didn't mean for this to happen-"

Simba got cut off by his uncle, who was slowly pulling him in with mock comfort. He reassured, "Of course, _of course_ you didn't. No one…ever _means_ for these things to happen. …But the king **is** dead," he looks down at Simba faking regret, "and if it weren't for you he'd still be alive."

Simba sniffled, burying his face into Scar's foreleg. _B-but, I didn't_ _ **want**_ _this to happen. I-_ , his thoughts go interrupted by Scar, as he exclaimed, "Oh! What will your mother think?"

 _What_ _ **would**_ _she think? She'd probably hate me for what I did…everyone would. What do I do?_ Simba thought frantically hoping for some clarity. He looked up at Scar through teary eyes, clearly grief-stricken and shocked. He sniffled, "What am I gonna do?"

Instantly, Scar answered, "Run away, Simba," this caused the young prince to back up in surprise. _Run?_ The prince thought. As if hearing his thoughts, Scar repeated, " _Run._ Run away and _never_ return."

Simba instantly go on all fours and began running as fast as he could. _I have to get away from the Pride Lands. There's no way I could face the pride after killing my father. …But, I can't exactly run away either. What if they come looking for me? What if they even think_ _ **I**_ _died too? Would they think I abandoned them…_ a flurry of questions came to Simba's mind, causing him to slow his pace. Should he run? It wouldn't be very king-like to run away, instead of facing the consequences ahead of you. He whispered, "No, I have to go back. I have to face them."

With that in mind, Simba turned around and started heading back home.

* * *

Scar watched with silent pleasure as his nephew turned tail and started running off. _Now, all I have to do is get rid of the nuisance_ , he thought methodically. As if on cue, three hyenas appeared behind him quietly, manically grinning. Anyone could tell they were itching to sink their teeth into the cub and watch as his life slowly drains away. …But, they knew better, they waited for Scar's signal. Scar waited for a few seconds, turned his head, and commanded, "Kill-"

A voice interrupted, "Uncle Scar!"

Scar's eyes shrank and he thought frightfully, _No-no-no-no-no! That's not possible!_ He turned his head and saw the impossible running towards him, seemingly more confident. He shouted in shock, " **Simba!?** "

"Simba!?" Two of the hyenas parroted, while the other looked stunned and oblivious at the same time. Scar swished his tail, signaling them to go hide. The three got the message and hid back into the-now dissipating-dust. The dark lion looked back at the young cub, who was not panting in front of him. He asked spastically, "Wh-what are you…why are you….What made you-"

Simba interrupted, "I realized that a true king would face his crimes and any punishment that comes with it. So, I decided to come back."

Scar's eyes darted back-and-forth, trying to find a way to make Simba run away again. He stuttered, "B-But…what about, uh, you're m-mother? Or your friend…what was her name? Um, Malaya?"

Simba's faced scrunched up in confusion and he corrected, "Nala…"

"Yes, yes. Her. What about them? Can you imagine their dread when they hear about your crime?"

"Yes, I know. I thought about that, but if I ran away, then they would've thought I abandoned them or they may even think that I was dead. It would've been terrible."

 _It would've been glorious_ , Scar thought longingly. He sighed and agreed in mock sadness, "Yes, it would've been devastating to see the pride so crestfallen in thinking both the king and prince died."

Simba nodded in agreement, knowing that Scar also knew it was best for him to return as well. He looked back at his father's corpse, padded over to it, and nuzzled underneath his chin. He whispered, "Don't worry, dad. I will make you proud, even if I do get banished from the Pride Lands."

With that being said, Simba walked over to the side of the gorge and started climbing up, leaving a furious uncle behind. Scar's eyes blazed rage, as he mumbled every single Swahili curse word. One of the hyenas, a female, stepped out and asked, "Scar…are you-"

Scar let out ferocious howl and slashed across Mufasa's face. He snarled at the slightly bleeding corpse, hoping that he could feel the pain in the afterlife. The three hyenas looked at Scar, bewildered. Scar's wide, manic eyes shot up to the three, realizing it was going to take more than a corpse to vent his anger upon. The three noticed this and whimpered, taking steps back as Scar slowly advanced. One of the male hyenas chuckled nervously, "Hahaha, well, this has been fun, Scar. But, uh, we gotta go. Right, Shenzi?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course," Shenzi quickly agreed, never taking her eyes off of the angered lion. The two quickly shot looks at the second male and said in unison, "Ed?"

The slower hyena grunted an agreement, and then the three quickly ran off. Scar crouched down, ready to start chasing after them, until a voice up top shouted, "Scar? Are you okay?"

Scar looked up and saw Simba looking down at him with generous concern. It disgusted him. He rolled his eyes and answered, "Yes, I'm fine. I'm still shaken at the thought of my brother's death. Don't worry; I'll be there, Simba."

The young cub nodded and then disappeared. Scar hissed, "Now what am I going to do? That cub better get banished or even torn apart by the pride," he started climbing up the gorge and assured, "They'd have no choice but to banish him. I don't know what else they would do."

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 **So, I hope you enjoyed that chapter. If you want me to continue, please put up a review. I'll say this now, if I do continue, I'm not _too_ sure where I want this to go, so we'll all be in for a bumpy ride. Also, the humor will start coming as soon as I get passed all the drama. Anyway, again, I hope you enjoyed. Please review!**

 **Also, Malaya means prostitute in Swahili.**

 **Disclaimer: You know the drill. I own nothing.**


	2. Chapter 2: WHAT?

**A/N: I'm really excited for this story. I hope you don't mind if it gets a bit fast paced towards the end. Also, thank you to who all favorite-d, followed, and reviewed. Anyway, enjoy. Also, ignore any spelling or punctuation errors.**

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Once Scar finally was done climbing up the gorge, he saw Simba digging his claws into the ground mumbling something to himself, clearly worry was etched across his face. He heard mumble words such as, "It won't be too bad" or "…Maybe they'll go easy on me, it was an accident after all."

A smile stretched across the dark lion's face, as he padded closer to his distraught nephew. He cleared his throat, causing the cub to jump and look at him with widen, dilated eyes. He inwardly chuckled at how helpless the cub looked, but he kept a worrisome look on his face. He informed, "You know, Simba, it's not too late to turn back. I mean, look at you," he pointed a claw a Simba's shivering form, "you're scared to death."

Simba didn't answer him, instead, he averted his gaze to the ground, thinking to himself. _Uncle Scar has a point, I am a mess,_ He thought sullenly to himself. He was trembling with fear with every thought that passed through his mind, the thought of being cast out the pride terrified him. Who knows what they would do to him? Who knows what other predators would do to him? Aheiu knows that there are tons of carnivores that wouldn't mind ripping him apart. But, the pride isn't that cruel, right.

Simba stammered, "S-Scar, you d-don't think that the pride would p-penalize harshly, r-right?"

Scar hummed in thought, putting a claw up to his chin. He actually wondered what the pride would do, if they knew about his crime. Of course, he was hoping for something gruesome, but at the same time he knew Simba would want so comfort. So, he decided to keep up the charade and reassured, "Don't worry, dear nephew. I'll try my best to protect you."

Scar pulled a quivering Simba into a-reluctant-hug and comforted, "Now, now. Calm down."

Simba took a deep breath and laid his head down on Scar's foreleg, trying to calm down. _He's right, I should calm down. I can't think too much about this. I might as well get it over with,_ Simba thought, trying anyway to bring back his confidence. He started feeling Scar's foreleg twitch, as if he wanted to get a move on or he was trying to shake the cub off. Simba shook his to forget the latter and got off of his foreleg.

The two were silent for a few seconds, until Scar spoke up, "Well, the sooner we get there the better, hmm?"

Simba nodded and murmured, "Yeah, sure."

And with that, the two started walking off towards Pride Rock both feeling a bit curious as to what will happen.

* * *

Once they got closer to Pride Rock, they saw the lionesses all gathered in a circle, as if they were discussing something. Scar shot Simba a quick look, noticing his eyes had dilated again and his ears flattened against his head. He cackled silently to himself, antsy knowing what fate would befall that young prince. An orange-eyed, dark pelted lioness turned her head and shouted, "Scar? …Simba!"

Feeling a bit excited, Simba ran up to the lioness and shouted, "Mom!"

The two ran up to each other purring and nuzzling. Simba pulled back a bit and noticed his mom's teary eyes, which got him wondering why she was crying. _D-Does she already know?_ Simba thought sullenly and asked, "Wh-What's wrong, mom?"

The lioness backed away from her son, breathing hard and trying to calm herself. Scar walked closer and seeing the lioness's behavior, he asked toneless, "What's wrong, Sarabi?"

Sarabi took a deep breath and answered, "Zazu told us what happened in the gorge," she turned her head up to Pride Rock, in the middle of the lionesses was a morose hornbill. She went on, "We all thought you all had died. Simba, where's Mufasa?"

Simba whimpered a bit, causing Sarabi's worriment to resurface. Simba didn't say anything, he just slowly walked up the rocky edifice. The first lioness to notice him was a friend of his with a creamy pelt and had teal green eyes. She shouted in shock, "Simba!"

She was about to run towards him, but she noticed how guilty he looked; in addition, all the lioness put their attention on him. Simba didn't bother raising his head to look at them, too ashamed of what they would think. He heard a few flaps and knew it was Zazu. The hornbill asked, "Sire, I apologized for what happened in the gorge. I was about to go get help, but I'm afraid something had me unconscious."

Simba looked at the majordomo and sighed, "It's…fine."

"Simba…are you okay?' Zazu worriedly asked the depressed prince. Simba simply shook his head and mumbled something inaudible underneath his breath, starting to quiver. Zazu placed a wing on the prince's back and comforted, "It's alright, Simba. Whatever happened in the gorge, just remember, it's not your-"

"But it is!" Simba shouted, causing everyone in the pride to jump. He sat down in front of all them, breathing heavily and tears falling down his face. The teal-green eyed lioness asked shocked, "Wha-What do you mean?"

Simba looked up at her, at all of them and spastically explained, "I-I was p-practicing my roar…I didn't think…I didn't know the wildebeest w-were," he took a deep breath and continued, "Th-they were everywhere. I jumped on a branch, b-but it broke and then dad…I'm sorry. N-No one was supposed to get hurt."

"Hurt?" A voice asked behind him. He turned around and saw his mother with a morbid stare, and Scar looking at the cub with a bit of pity…and something else. Simba breathed in and finished, "D-Dad h-he…I-I killed…him. He's d-dead."

A deafening silence fell amongst the pride that no one dare to break. Everyone stared at the young prince, shocked and confused by what he said. How can a small cub kill their own father? That was a questioned that loomed over their heads, but no one voiced it because they knew how badly the cub wanted to be king. …Could it be possible that- "No!" A voice shouted, breaching the silence. Simba looked up and croaked, "N-Nala."

The young lioness padded up to her friend and smacked his face. A few lionesses gasped at her action and one scolded, " _Nala!_ "

Nala ignored the lioness and repeated, "No! No, there's no way you killed your father. You loved him just as much as anyone in the pride, probably even more."

"B-But, Nala. A fact is a fact. I-I killed," Simba winced when he felt another swat on his head. He groaned, "Ow! Nala- Grah!"

Simba got cut off when Nala grabbed on to his ear with her teeth and started dragging him towards the den. Before they went in, Nala turned around and shouted, "You all should be ashamed of yourself for thinking he would do such a thing! Do you honestly think he would kill his own father?"

With that, she walked inside the den with Simba right behind her. She comforted, "Don't worry, Simba; I know you're-"

She stopped when she heard sobbing and hard breathing behind her. She looked at her friend sympathetically, walked over to him, and pulled him into a hug. Nala whispered, "I'm sorry about your father."

* * *

Everyone outside the den just stood in shock at hearing what Nala had said, however, they never thought that she was wrong. Murmuring went amongst the pride:

"Maybe Simba didn't do it."

"He **_is_** only a cub after all."

"It probably was just the stampede."

"But, he did **_cause_** the stampede."

The only lions not participating in the arguments was Sarabi, who was stunned by the news, and Scar, who was less surprised. He padded towards Sarabi and put a paw on her shoulder, getting her out of her trance. He calmed, "I'm very sorry that you had to hear that, Sarabi. I can only imagine how you must be feeling."

She sighed heavily, "Thank you, Scar."

"But, there is a question that must be addressed," Sarabi looked at him quizzically. He continued, "What will you do with him?"

"I-I hadn't thought about that," Sarabi answered feeling as if the whole world had fell upon her shoulders. She didn't even want to think about the consequences that may befall her son. She didn't even want to believe that he _killed_ his father. There has to be something she's missing. _But what is it?_ She thought frantically. Seeing the panic on her face, a light tan lioness came up to her and asked, "Are you all right, Sarabi?"

Sarabi groaned, putting a paw to her head, "No, I'm not. If Simba, did…you know, then I don't want him to be punished, at least not harshly. I don't know what to do."

The lioness glanced at Scar, hoping he would have an answer, but he seemed like he didn't care about Sarabi's comfort, only her answer. The lioness snarled quietly at the dark lion and said, "Look, you don't have to worry about that at the moment. Right now, and I know you don't want to think about this, but we _need_ a new king."

Unknowingly, the lioness didn't see Scar's ears perk up when he heard "new king". He smirked a bit at the thought of taking the throne and waited for her response. Sarabi sighed, "I know, I know."

She walked up to the chattering lionesses and cleared her throat to gain their attention. They all looked at her expectantly. She clarified, "Despite what we have recently discovered, we must put the past behind us and focus on a new king. And since there is only one lion who can take the place, I hereby announce that…" _C'mon Sarabi! There's has to be way to get Simba away from the punishment. Think!_

The lioness behind her was about to ask her what was wrong, but Scar went in front of her and said, "Ah ah. We'd rather not mess someone has distressed as her. She clearly is just in thought. Don't mess with her, Sarafina."

He snarled the last sentence, making Sarafina glare and growl back, but she didn't pursue. The two heard Sarabi gasp, as she quickly finished, "I hereby announce that…Simba is the new king!"

" **What!?** " Sarafina and Scar shouted.

" **What!?** " echoed the pride.

" **What!?** " Simba exclaimed, looking back at all the shocked face. An excited Nala bounced up and down beside him. She whooped, "Alright, Simba! You're king! High-"

She stopped when she saw Simba glare at her. She winced and apologized, "Right, too soon. Sorry."

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 **Yeah, bad time, Nala. I really like how this chapter came out, and again the humor will start picking up. I swear. I just don't want to start right after Mufasa has just died. Unless the humor already started for you, then good. Anyway, if you want me to continue, then please leave a review.**

 **Disclaimer: ...Yeah.**


	3. Chapter 3: Redemption and Incrimination

**A/N: Sorry about the wait, but I had a difficult time trying to actually put this chapter together. Also, sorry that it's short, I hope it's still good though. Enjoy!**

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A few moments later, the rest of the pride left Pride Rock to go pay their respects to their late king. Simba decided to stay back, saying that he wouldn't be able to handle the sight again. Nala stayed back, as well, to give him moral support. Although, he also remained so that he could process what exactly just happened. He asked Nala so eloquently, "What happened?"

"Well, it's pretty obvious. You became king," Nala pointed out, matter-of-factly. The two were sitting at the peak of Pride Rock, looking out towards the horizon, waiting for the pride to get back. Simba just shook his head, looking puzzled. He replied, "Well, yeah. I know that, but why? I-I just confessed my crime and I get _rewarded_ for it!? That doesn't make any sense…"

He sighed, lying on his stomach with his paws placed over his head. Nala nuzzled her friend's cheek, trying to console him, but all he did was give her a sideways glance. She just sighed sullenly, got on her stomach, and comforted, "Well, I think at the moment you should just, I don't know, accept it."

Simba quickly raised his head to intervene, but Nala interjected, "I know, _I know_. It's a lot to take in, but if you think about it, it's better than being banished," Simba grumbled an agreement. "Plus, this just might be a sign. If you really did…um… _harm_ your father, then maybe this is the Great Kings way for you to redeem yourself. Take your father's place and rule the kingdom as rightly as he did," Nala finished off with an encouraging smile. Simba nodded slowly, taking in what his friend had said. _Maybe this is a way I can redeem myself. Yeah… **Yeah!** This is how I'll make dad proud! _ Simba cheered his thoughts. He exclaimed, "You're right, Nala!"

She lifted her head high, smirked, and said proudly, "Of course I am."

Simba-literally-jumped up to his paws and repeated, "You're right! I'll rule over the pride, just like my dad would! I'll do it for him!"

Nala beamed, stood up, and cheered, "That's right, Simba!"

The young king looked up at the sky, feeling like he could take on the world. He whispered, "I won't let you down, dad."

* * *

Meanwhile, down in the gorge, the lionesses are crowded around their deceased king, weeping for their lost. Their sobs and prayers echoed off the steep, jagged walls; the loudest wails of all would have to be the queen, Sarabi. She laid down beside Mufasa, weeping out wishes of him returning to the living. Unfortunately, excluding the cries, the only response she was left with was silence. Although, not everyone was saddened by this sight. Scar sat off about a foot away, just watching the disheartening display with half-hearted interest. The only distressing thought that went through the dark lion's mind was that his nephew- _the impudent brat_ -has become _king_! For the first time ever, Scar actually was concerned for Sarabi, fearing that he mind was slowly deteriorating due to age.

"Scar?" A voice called out, hoarseness coursing their voice. Scar snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Sarafina padding towards him. Suppressing a heavy sigh, Scar answered, "Yes, Sarafin-AH!"

Before he could even finish, Scar got pulled into a consoling-and for him, awkward-hug. He grunted a bit in confusion at the act of kindness. Sarafina comforted, "I'm so sorry that your brother's gone. I know you two weren't the best of friends after you heard about Mufasa crowning, but I can't imagine how it must feel knowing your own kin is gone."

She sniffled a bit, trying to repress a crying fit. Scar chuckled inwardly, **_Me!?_** _Feel regretful? Please. I'm elated that that waste of space is dead._ Even with these thoughts, Scar wrapped a foreleg around Sarafina and sobbed insincerely, "Yes, it's absolutely dreadful seeing my dear brother like this. Although, I imagine Sarabi is taking it harder."

"Yes, she is," replied Sarafina, solemnly. Scar was about to pull away from the now excruciatingly uncomfortable hug, but got pulled in tighter and heard Sarafina hiss, "Alright. I don't know how or why, but I have a feeling you did this. Just **_stay away_** from Sarabi and Simba!"

Noticing that no lioness paid them any mind, Scar gently, but knowingly, sunk his claws into the lioness's back and whispered, "Or else what?"

She snarled, quietly, "I'll rip your guts out, and I'll make sure your death will be slow."

The two let go of one another and shared heated glares. Despite the threat, Scar showed no sign of fear, knowing that her threat was mostly empty. How do you incriminate someone with no evidence? He just gave her a toothy, and seemingly, tender smile and informed, "Don't you think it'd be smart to soothe your queen? Run along."

She bared her fangs at him, giving a silent snarl, and walked away from the dark lion. Scar only rolled his eyes at the desperate display. _No reason to panic. She's only going off an imprudent assumption. That just happens to be correct…not that she needs to know that,_ with that in mind, Scar briefly said that he needed time alone and scaled up the immense gorge.

* * *

When Sarafina got back to the pride, her legs felt like they would collapse beneath her. _That was crazy! What was I thinking!? If it wasn't for the fact that I've known him sense cubhood, I wouldn't have incriminated like that. Although, I know that he **had** to have **something**. It's not like he doesn't have the motivation, still, I don't think he'd even stoop this low. I just need to know how._

"Sarafina!"

The young lioness shook herself out of her thoughts and looked over at Sarabi. The pride was climbing back up to go back home. She got the message and quickly padded over to the queen's side. When she close to her, she gave Sarabi a disconcerting look. The elder lioness sighed, "I know. I know. I panicked, alright. I didn't know what to do. I just…I just couldn't stand to see my son banished or killed or-"

Sarafina nuzzled her gently and gave her a calming lick on the ear. As they were climbing slowly behind the pride, she consoled, "I understand, Sarabi. Nevertheless, you do realize all the hardships Simba will _have_ to face, right?"

Sarabi sighed, "I know," she looked up at the sky and finished, "May the Great Kings help us."

* * *

 **Alright! Sadness and drama is finally over! Now, I can finally bring in the funnies! Although, that doesn't guarantee the updates will come any quicker. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Please leave a review!**

 **Disclaimer: You all know this song and dance: I own _nothing_!**


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